Nora in Oz
by CinderFallOfHaven
Summary: One day, while bored out of her skull, Nora Valkyrie suddenly finds herself in a sickeningly colorful world.
1. Introduction

Introduction:

Nora Valkyrie, age 17, was walking around Beacon Academy. She was indescribably, unmistakably bored. She paced the same area forming scuff marks on the walkway from where she turned on her heel.

"I'm so bored!" She wailed at the top of her lungs. "Ren is busy in the library, Pyrrha is busy practicing with Jaune, Ruby is busy with cleaning up the cookie disaster in the living area, Weiss is busy being a total Weiss, Blake is busy reading, and Yang isn't even here! Why is it whenever I want to do something, everyone is always so busy! It makes me want to vomit!" Nora collapsed on her back and looked directly into the clear blue sky. Seeing the perfect day made her even more upset than before. "And to think, yesterday I was as sick as Zwei. Everyone was available then!" Her voice cracked. "Do they not like me? I mean, I am a bit hyperactive, but I mean well." Nora sat up and grabbed her knees. "I hate being all on my own. I was so happy when Ren was there for me, I thought I'd never face these long days on my own anymore." She stood up with determination. "Fine then! If I'm not going to be appreciated, then I'll just get my things and go on my own picnic!"

Nora began to trot back towards the dorms. She threw open the door and passed by the living area to hear Ruby's working grunts, she passed by the covered walk that led to the rest of the school, she passed by each room until she reached the dorm room for team JNPR. She slammed the door open and grabbed whatever was in sight and began to run back out when suddenly WHAM her head hit something big and hard. She started to fall backwards towards the floor and the room swirled and she felt like she was spinning. The room spun faster and faster until Nora was about to throw up. And just as suddenly as the sensation had started, it came to a screeching halt.

When she finally came to, Nora sat up in the room. She rubbed her eyes and felt a twinge of pain on her head. After her vision cleared up, she looked around to see nobody in the room and the door closed.

"That's weird, I could've sworn I left this thing open." She was about to open it when she heard two barks coming from under her bed. "What in the!" She pulled the covers up to notice a terrified Zwei cowering in the center. "Come on out here you little rascal." Zwei slowly made his way out from under the bed and looked up at her with big beady eyes. She smiled and rubbed his head. He started to loosen up and did two happy barks to show his appreciation. "Alright now, let's get you back across the hall to where you belong!" She scooped the corgi into her arms and walked to the door, twisted the knob, and opened inward. She was momentarily blinded by the piercing sunlight and when her eyes finally adjusted, she noticed a big colorful world right in front of her and a yellow sidewalk leading from her room into a forest. "What."


	2. Welcome to Oz

Chapter 1 – Welcome to the Fantastic World of Oz

"Where am I?" Nora cautiously stepped out of her room and looked around. Vivid plants adorned with festive colors and bright cheerful flora lined the pathway with some tiny weeds growing through the cracks in the walk. The trees were a magnificent green and the grass was a beautiful green while the houses nearby were a voracious green and the people there were in…green. "Why is everything green." Nora sighed uneasily and noticed that the people in the village she was nearby were all staring at here. They looked horrified just at the sight of her. She laughed nervously at them and started to take a few steps backwards.

"Look! Her house killed the Wicked Witch of Mistral!" One of the green people pointed at the bottom of the perfect cube cutout of the JNPR dorm room.

Nora glanced down at the bottom of the room and noticed two legs poking out from under it, beside the legs laid a beautiful golden necklace that sparkled radiantly amidst the green. Nora bent over and picked up the necklace and pocketed it. "This will make good cash if I sell it at a pawn shop!" She thought to herself.

She looked back at the green people and they were still too scared to even move close to her. "Uh, hi?" She raised an arm and waved. The people retreated a little bit and a few yelped in fear. "I'm not going to hurt you, I promise!" Yet, the crowd did not move any closer. Nora began to pout a little and was about to start giving reasons when a gigantic purple bubble floated down in the center of the village. It popped and in the middle of it was a beautiful woman with gorgeous blonde hair and green eyes. She wore a white dress with a purple cape attachment and had a pair of glasses resting on the bridge of her nose. Just the way she carried herself screamed maturity.

A woman from the village stepped forward and cheered, "it's the Good Witch of Vale! Now we'll be saved from that red-haired witch that landed so suddenly in the outskirts of our village!"

"Please, please. Show some respect." The woman stepped in front of the crowd and put her arms out to reference all the members of the village. "You are in the midst of the girl who single handedly took out one of the most powerful witches in all of Remnant. You should be thanking her instead of wanting to kill her." The villagers began to mumble in guilt and apologized to Nora. Nora, meanwhile, stood dumbfounded at the fact that this woman appeared in a bubble. She was about to say something when the woman approached her, "now, dear. What is your name and where do you come from?"

"I, uh. My name is Nora Valkyrie. I come from my dorm room." Nora pointed at her room. Zwei barked in a protective way. "This one is Zwei. He's the girls' from across the hall. During some sort of spinning issue, he found his way into my room and was here. He's normally a sweet boy, and I have no idea what is making him so angry right now." She rubbed his head. "All right, now that I've introduced myself, can you tell me where I am-"

Nora was cut off midsentence when the sky turned a deadly black and a red eye appeared in the path. Another woman, this one looked extremely wicked, arrived in the village. All the villagers shrieked and bolted for their homes. Nora was frightened by the sudden presence of such a vile woman.

"Glynda. Of course, you would already have arrived on the scene. I understand that our dear sister, Cinder, was killed. May I ask what has become of her gift?" The woman talked in a very definite tone as if any sort of outburst would lead to instant death. Her appearance was the near opposite of Glynda's. Her hair was a bone white tint, she had red eyes and a long black dress that flowed as if it were made of shadows itself. "If I recall correctly, it becomes mine since Cinder would have given it to me." She sneered in a gloating manner.

"You have no right to it anymore. This young lady by the name of Nora Valkyrie has claimed the gift and it has already bonded with her." Glynda pointed at Nora's neck where the necklace she grabbed earlier now rested. Nora was surprised at this as she remembered well that she had put it in her pocket. "Any and all attempts to take from her alive will result in your doom, Salem."

"Oh? And who is going to stop me? She has no magic power from what I can sense, so it's obviously not her." Salem was quickly losing her temper with the entire situation. Salem directed her eyes at Nora, "you, girl. Hand over the necklace now or you will face the consequences." She began to move ever so elegantly towards Nora. It almost seemed like she wasn't walking at all, but gliding across the ground.

"You will do no such thing!" Glynda jumped in front of Nora and pulled out her magic wand from her cleavage. "I shall see to it that Nora is safe from your evil, Salem. I put a spell on her to keep you away from her so that she can make it to her destination without you being able to touch her! And I WILL know if you ever harm her on her journey!" Glynda tapped Nora's head with the wand and a warm sensation trickled down her entire body that felt like it was encasing her in a protective layer.

"You foul succubus! How dare you cheat me out of what is rightfully mine!" Salem howled at Glynda. She huffed and panted while her red eyes shined so brightly it made Nora sick. "No matter, even if you do protect her for now, she won't always be under your wing. As soon as she steps anywhere near my domain on her own accord, your protection will mean nothing any longer. I hope you're prepared for this, Glynda." With a snap of her fingers and crack of lightning, Salem disappeared. As soon as she vanished from sight, the sky lightened again and became a wave of blue that soon brought relief to Nora.

"It's okay now, children. You may come out of your houses once more. The wicked witch has gone away and you are safe now." Glynda called soothingly into the village. Slowly, one by one, the villagers opened their doors and once more came up to Glynda. "This is Nora Valkyrie. She is just a girl who happened to appear here. Please don't mistreat her." The villagers cheered in jubilation at the news. "Now, my dear, tell me. Where is it that you are going to?"

Nora faced Glynda, "well, ma'am. I want to just go home. It's where I truly belong and it's where all my friends and family is. I just want to go home." Nora sniffled a little and she heard a child in the crowd begin to cry on her behalf.

"That is possible, Ms. Valkyrie." Glynda smiled a very cool grin. "All you need to do is follow this copyrighted walkway towards the city of Vale in the kingdom of Vale. It isn't too far from here. Right now, you're in the Emerald Forest. Keep along this path and you'll be there without any problems." Glynda stepped away from Nora as Nora began to get back on the yellow road. "And remember, if Salem ever gives you trouble, I will always be able to protect you." With a smile and a wave of her wand, she encases herself in her purple bubble and floats away into the sky.

"Ma'am you can stay here if you want to!" One of the women called out. "We have a lovely hotel and some wonderful bakeries if you need anything."

Nora looked back at the villagers and stopped for a minute. "Do you have pancakes?" She laid Zwei down on the ground and crossed her arms.

"Why, of course! What sort of bakery would I run if I couldn't make simple pancakes!" A man wearing a green chef's hat moved forward towards Nora. "I can whip up a batch right now if you want."

"Yes, I would love some!" Nora was nearly drooling at the thought of pancakes.

"How many would you like?" The baker smiled with glee.

"How many can you make in the next ten minutes?" Nora wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

"I can make about twenty, but I think that's too much for a young girl in such good sha-"

"I'll take them!"

Twelve minutes later, Nora held a bag filled with pancakes in one hand and skipping away from the village gleefully. Zwei was happily trotting beside her, barking every now and then to make sure she knew he was still there. "All right Vale, here I come!" Nora exclaimed as she moved further and further into the forest and away from her dorm room.


	3. The Scarecrow

Chapter 2 – The Scarecrow

"Aww, the bag's all empty now…" Nora grumbled to herself while shaking the bag that used to hold twenty pancakes. "I've only been away from that village for five minutes and I'm already all out! Have I no control!" Zwei shook his head. "Oh, what do you know, dog."

"Hey! I need help!" Someone was near Nora and was in danger from the sound of it. "You there, little girl!" Nora looked around the landscape for the owner of the voice. On one side of the yellow pathway was a road that lead towards Vacuo, on the other side of the pathway was a big cornfield that seemed to stretch on for miles. "Please, just look at me. Am I really that invisible?" Nora's eyes finally made contact with a scarecrow that was just barely outside of the cornfield. "Ah, good! Now we're on the same page!"

Nora jumped back, startled that the voice belonged to the scarecrow. "Uh, Mr. Scarecrow? How come you can talk?"

The scarecrow looked sad, "me? I've always been able to talk, but people just seem to ignore me." He looked awfully familiar, but Nora couldn't put her finger on where she had seen him before. "Now, if you could help me? I really would like to get off this perch. It doesn't really suit my look."

She moved forward and pulled him off the stake, setting him down on the pathway. He brushed his black shirt after standing up, but he immediately fell back down. He smiled at her, she groaned and picked him back up. "Can you tell me why you're all the way out here?"

"Well, as you can see, I am a scarecrow. A farmer put me on the stake to ward crows away from the corn, but I'm not that good at my job. I couldn't scare away a fly if I wanted to." He sighed heavily and stretched his arms. Right then, a man walked up the road and grabbed the corn from the field straight off the stalk. "Hey! You! Stop stealing the corn!"

"And what are you going to do? Scare me? You suck at your job." The man took a drink from his flask and grabbed more corn before walking back down the road.

"Do you see what I mean?" The scarecrow referenced at the man. "The crows really don't listen to what I have to say and they always leave a lingering smell of liquor." The scarecrow shifted his position. "I wish I had a brain. Then I could really hurl insults that would scare away those annoying crows."

"You want a brain? That would explain a lot actually…" Nora commented under her breath.

"What is that supposed to mean?" The scarecrow glared at her. She laughed and he rubbed his blonde hair trying to figure it out. Eventually, he gave up and returned his focus to Nora. "So, where are you going?"

"Oh, me? I'm headed to Vale. I'm supposed to be able to get home if I go there." Her mind traveled back to Beacon Academy where she remembered the times she spied on Ren showering, tripped Jaune in the hall, told jokes with Yang, annoyed Weiss with Ruby; how she longed to return to that.

"You're headed to Vale? What for?" He thought for a few seconds. "Oh, I know! You're going to see the Wizard Oz!" He grinned at himself for remembering such a big detail.

"Don't you mean the Wizard of Oz?" Nora questioned.

"No, no. His name is Oz and he's a great wizard. Ergo, he's the Wizard Oz." The scarecrow gleamed with happiness. "He's supposed to be able to grant wonderful wishes and give you whatever your heart desires! Maybe he can give me a brain!" He looked sparkly. Nora didn't want to touch him. She hates glitter. "Oh, please, can I go with you to Vale? I really really want a brain!" He pleaded with his hands clasped together.

"Well, I don't see why not. In fact, it would be really rude of me to say no." She nodded her head. "All right, you can go with me."

"You really mean it!" He beamed.

"Yes, just turn down the brightness already." Nora blocked her eyes with one hand.

"Yes, yes! Of course! Shall we hold hands and sing?" The scarecrow asked her honestly.

"Uh, no. What are you? Some kind of girl? No group of people in their right mind just randomly start to sing down a pathway. This isn't some work of fiction." Nora walked a little further ahead of the scarecrow and he clumsily ran to catch up with her.

"I'm no girl. But the farmer I was working for has seven daughters. So, I guess I just picked up some things from them. They always seemed to want to redo my hair and give me braids." He fluffed his hair. "I'm more of a warrior's wolf tail kind of guy myself!" He smiled smugly.

"Isn't that just a ponytail?" Nora laughed softly.

"No. It's mainly! It takes all the hair you have and brings it to the back and put it up like…" He looked ashamed. "Please don't ruin every good vision I have."

"I'll try not to, but I can't guarantee much!" She smiled as they walked. Zwei barked happily as he trotted between Nora and the scarecrow.

They made their way down the pathway increasingly until they were no longer visible from the cornfield. Just after, a man walked out of the cornfield and smirked. Salem was right, she was only a girl. No magic. He started at his own pace and began to follow Nora and the scarecrow into the woods.


	4. The Tinman

Chapter 3 – The Tinman

Keeping up with her own thoughts was annoying, but now Nora had to keep up with a scarecrow that was talking off her ear. She didn't want to be rude, but he really needs to know when to stop.

"…and THAT is the story of the first time I put more straw in by myself!" The scarecrow stopped talking for two seconds. "What did you think of that one?"

"It was a real tearjerker." Nora responded flatly.

"Well that's not right! The story isn't supposed to be sad, that was supposed to make you happy you found me!" He looked down at her. "Why are you crying? Is it something I said?"

"Yes! Now stop!" She stated in an agitated manner.

"MMMMMMMM" Someone nearby groaned. The scarecrow, Nora, and Zwei all stopped in their tracks. Whoever groaned that loudly was close.

"Well, now, did you hear that?" The scarecrow asked. It was obvious he was scared. His legs were shaking so violently Nora was surprised they were still attached.

"Hello? Who's there?" Nora called out into the woods. Another groan came calling down the path. "Come on, this way!" She ushered for the scarecrow to follow her. Zwei yipped as he ran with them. The groaning got louder and louder as they got closer and closer. Finally, they arrived where the groaning was. There was a neat log house in a clearing and beside it was a man made completely of tin. He wasn't moving and was in the position of gardening. "Okay, what."

Nora approached him carefully, hoping that he wasn't the one making the groaning. But he did, and she groaned too. "Thhhhhhhheeeeeeee ccccccaaaaaaaannnnnnnnn."

Nora looked at the scarecrow, but the scarecrow only shrugged. "The what now?" The tinman lowered his eyes towards an oil can just at his feet. "You want me to use this?" His eyes nodded. She picked up the can and pushed it at the joints at his mouth. Clicked it and make sure it could move.

"Oh, thank you! I've been stuck there for days and could only just now hope for someone to hear me. Please oil the rest of my body, I'm so stiff and would like to be relieved of this." He lowered his purple eyes to the rest of his body. "It rained recently and well…I got stuck."

Nora worked around the tinman and oiled the rest of him to get him moving. "There you go, that should work nicely."

The tinman moved around. The creaking of metal was cringeworthy, but he was so happy to finally be able to move. He immediately hugged Nora and thanked her for helping him. "I don't know how I can ever repay you!"

"Well, you could let go of me for one thing…" She squeaked out. "…you're kind of crushing me."

"Oh. OH! Oh, I'm so sorry!" He let go of her right then. "Where are you two…" he noticed Zwei down below, "…where are you three headed to?"

"We're going to the Wizard Oz! I'm going to ask for a brain!" The scarecrow answered for Nora.

"And I'm going to ask to go home." Nora added.

"How splendid! And if it's too much, can I ask to accompany you? I really don't want to stay around here and get stuck again." The tinman looked back at where he once stood. "And I guess I could ask the Wizard for a heart."

"What do you need a heart for?" Nora asked the tinman. "You're made of metal. Not really good use for a heart."

"I need a heart because I don't really feel alive. I'm just kind of, there. Normally, all I do is just absentmindedly walk around and live my life. But if I had a heart, I could be able to do so much more! Like fall in love, or feel it speed up during a scary movie, or even just to give it to someone who needs it!" The tinman kept going. Nora's eyes had glazed over long ago and she wasn't listening to a single thing.

"Well, that's a lot of thinking you've put into this entire idea! You must really have the brains for that." The scarecrow added with a hint of jealousy wafting in the air. "I could do things like that if I only had the capacity. I have straw." The scarecrow patted his body. He was in the middle of complaining about having straw when Zwei turned around and began to growl.

"Zwei! Shut up! Now's not a good time to be growling at a squirrel!" Nora chided him for growling. But she looked back up the path and noticed a man walking towards them. "Uh, guys. There's someone else here."

The scarecrow and tinman both stopped and looked to see who it was. The man had short hair and a magnificent mustache. He was well dressed in an overcoat and a suit and tie. He was certainly the kind of person that would be seen in a clothing store catalog.

He stopped a few feet away from Nora and the others and smiled. "I hope I'm not bothering you all, but I'm looking for someone."

Nora looked at him for a few seconds. Something seemed off about him. "Who are you looking for?"

"A girl. Named Nora Valkyrie." The man responded nicely.

"Why, that's your name isn't it?" The scarecrow asked Nora. She shot him the nastiest glare he had ever seen.

"Ah, it appears I've found you. Now, please come with me. My mistress would like your company." He held out his hand and smiled.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you and Salem." The scarecrow yipped and the tinman cringed at the mention of her name. "…but I will not be going with you…uh"

"My name is Dr. Watts. And you will be coming with me." He pulled out a stick that zapped with electricity. "Easy or hard. You choose." He smiled wickedly.

"No!" She grabbed the other two and they started to run down the path. Zwei ran up to Dr. Watts and tried to buy the others time, but Dr. Watts clubbed Zwei with the stick and the poor dog went unconscious almost immediately. "Zwei! No!" She stopped to look back as Dr. Watts jumped in front of her and nailing her in the chest with a surge of electricity. The scarecrow and tinman looked stunned as Watts hit them both with the baton.

"This was easier than I thought." He sneered.

"Well, you're wrong." Nora stood up, charged to the brim and ready to fight. He took a swing with the baton and Nora ducked. She instantly returned with an uppercut to the jaw and a kick the stomach. Dr. Watts skidded away from Nora and spit some blood onto the pathway.

"You insolent girl. I may not have the ability to beat you, but mark my words. Salem will get you. And your stupid dog, too." With that, Dr. Watts limped away into the forest and vanished from sight.

As soon as she was sure he was gone, Nora went running to make sure Zwei was okay. She knelt down next to him and rubbed his side, he was snoozing softly but woke up at the feeling of her hand on him. He wagged his tail and licked her hand. She smiled down at him and walked back towards the scarecrow and tinman. They were both on opposite sides of the pathway, dazed and confused. She helped them to their feet and explained what happened.

"So, you're wanted by the Wickedest Witch of all?" The scarecrow gulped. Nora nodded grimly. "All because you pocketed a necklace?" Nora nodded again. The scarecrow laughed nervously.

"Hmm…" The tinman voiced.

"Something on your mind, tin?" The scarecrow asked.

"I'm wondering if this necklace has any relations to the recent Grimm attacks in the forest." The tinman thought aloud. "Maybe, just maybe, that necklace has special abilities."

"Well, why would Salem, oh quit your whining," Nora grimaced at the two for reacting cowardly. "Why would Salem want the necklace if it had no magic in it at all? I guess that means I'll have to keep it extra safe." She patted her chest where the necklace laid. She never noticed until now, but the shape of the necklace was a rose. "Even if we're still in the dark forest, we should keep moving. We want to make it out as quickly as possible, right?" The two agreed with her. "Then let's keep moving!"

"Now can we sing, Nora? To get the stress off our minds?" The scarecrow asked her.

"If you hum a single bar, I'm putting you back on that stake." Nora threatened. She looked ahead down the path and hoped nothing else waited to snare them.


End file.
